Killer of Punjab Origin Nurse Confesses to Crime in a TV Interview in Chandigarh; Arrested

Weeks after the commission of the crime in a city hotel resurfaces on Punjabi news channel with a confession statement

The HT correspondent on January 15, 2020, reported that 31-year-old man behind the sensational murder of a Punjab origin nurse in a Chandigarh hotel, Maninder Singh, wanted by the Chandigarh Police, confessed to his crime in a live TV interview.

The murder convict, presently out on bail in another gruesome murder of a woman, Renu. in Karnal in 2010. Both were in a relationship, he confessed having told the channel. He claimed to have challenged his conviction in the Punjab and Haryana high court.

On a tip-off, the police personnel zeroed in on the Punjabi news channel operating from Industrial Area, Phase 2, Chandigarh and nabbed the convict while the program was being telecast live on the TV studio.

The victim, Sarabjit Kaur (27) was found lying on her bed in room number 301 of hotel Sky, with her throat slit, in the afternoon of January 1, 2020. The police said they were not able to trace out the weapon used in the crime.

As per information, Kaur had checked in the hotel along with Maninder on December 30, last year. CCTV grabs showed Maninder checking out the same evening after committing the crime, which came to light when the hotel staff went to inquire about their check-out timings, as they (The couple) had made the bookings for two days only.

Sarabjit, a native of Sangrur, who had earlier a service stint with a private hospital at Mohali, had been got selected for All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bathinda and her training had to commence at the PGIMER in a few days.

Maninder, who worked as a driver in a factory in Chandigarh till three months, was in a relationship with the victim and had visited the hotel a number of times, the investing officer claimed.

Maninder, in the interview with the channel, is reported to have told that he killed her because she had an affair with the brother of her sister-in-law. He informed that the suspected ‘lover’ had messaged on her mobile phone, stating he was leaving for Kuwait and she should meet him before his departure to Kuwait.

“I read the messages on Sarabjit’s mobile phone and asked her who he was. She narrated me the entire story. The moment she told me that both were getting married soon, I decided to kill her”, he complained to confessed to the channel.

During the interview, Maninder revealed that everything was okay between them. They had, during their happier times, visited the holy city of Amritsar. He also told the channel that Sarabjit’s family had spurned his marriage proposals many times for one or the other reason, the caste being the major hurdle. Both were making plans of eloping at one point in time, he reported having told the channel.

Maninder, youngest of his three siblings, informed that his father was a carpenter and his two elder sisters were married. He said he had studied at Government Senior Secondary School in Sector 27, till class 12.

While police had been claiming that Maninder had fled to Punjab or Madhya Pradesh after going for a makeover of his baptized Sikh look, he appeared on a TV show making a confession statement. The police have registered a case under the relevant section of the IPC.